Prefabricated water tank



March 17, 1970 CHQZABURQ UENQ 3,500,602

PREFABRIGATED WATER TANK 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 15. 1968 cHozABuRo uENo 3,500,602

March 17, 1970 PREFABRICATED WATER TANK 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 15. 1968 March 17, 1970 cHozABuRo ur-:No 3,500,502

PREFABRICATED WATER TANK Filed Jan. 15.1968

3 Sheets-Sheet 3 United States Patent O 3,500,602 PREFABRICATED WATER TANK Chozaburo Ueno, Chiba-shi, Japan, assigner to Kawasaki Steel Corporation, Kobe-shi, Hyogoken, Japan, a corporation of Japan Filed Jan. 15, 1968, Ser. No. 697,773 Claims priority, application Japan, Jan. 17, 1967, 42/3,251 Int. Cl. E02d 27/46; E04h 7/02 U.S. Cl. 52-265 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A tightly sealed, light-weight water tank of a desired size which permits local repair or modification after completion can be constructed by merely assembling together mass-produced cap members, channel members and connecting members adapted for connecting and fixing said channel members and by providing water-proof caulking in the spaces in the assembly. Thus, construction work is extremely simplified and prompted. Component members can be carried along or transported easily. A marked curtailment of construction cost is achieved.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field .of the invention The present invention relates to prefabricated water tanks which can be easily constructed by the mere as sembly of the component members.

Description of the prior art Water tanks such as Water reservoirs and swimming pools are subjected to considerable amount of stresses such as water pressure which are applied to the tank structures externally. Therefore, the water tanks of this kind require to have a structure which can sufliciently cope with these external forces or stresses applied thereto.

Many of the water tanks of this kind .of the prior art have been constructed by the use of concrete as the principal component material. These concrete structures were built in the following manner. After the foundation work has been completed, iron bars are inserted or erected on the foundation work. Then, these iron bars were enclosed in temporary wooden frames and concrete is poured into these frames containing reinforcement iron bars. This operation is commonly called concrete placing. After the placed concrete has set thoroughly, the wooden frames are removed. Then, the surfaces of the resulting concrete structure are given a water-proof treatment by the application of a plastering. Thereafter, accessory littings are attached to the resulting structure. The construction is completed with the laying of earth on the ground around the external peripheral walls of the structure. Accordingly, the construction work of this type contained a number of operations which were of the nature that had to be carried out at the site of construction. Therefore, the construction work involved complicated operations such as welding the joints to form aligned surfaces of the structure, and besides, the field operations were such that it was diiiicult to expect precision Work with respect to dimensions or the like. Further, such construction work required, as a matter of fact, a series of procedures which should be carried out in the predetermined order. Moreover, the setting of concrete required a considerable length of time. Thus, the water tanks which were constructed according to the construction method of the prior art necessitated the consumption of a considerable length of period owing to these reasons stated above. In addition, the water tanks having the aforesaid structures 3,500,602 Patented Mar. 17, 1970 ICC of the prior art were of a weight which was of a great magnitude.

In 4order to improve these disadvantages and drawbacks of the method of construction of the prior art, prefabricated structures utilizing steel component members have been proposed recently. These steel structures, however, are constructed by the use of shape steel bars and ribs of steel plates as the frame-work members, and steel plates are ixedly attached to these frame-works. In these steel structures also, their construction also involved the work of uniting the component members by welding process, and these operations were mostly carried out at the site of construction. Therefore, such a construction work unexceptionally involved complicated operations which required precision work, butin the same way as has been discussed in connection with the concrete structures, it was also difficult to secure precision in work with respect particularly to dimensions. As a result, the construction of this type necessitated a considerable length of time for the completion of work.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is, therefore, Va primary object of the present invention to improve and simplify the complicated structure of the conventional water tanks such as water reservoirs and swimming pools, and to simplify the conventional complicated method of constructing such Water tanks, and also to provide an improved water tank which is light in weight and which can be constructed quickly with a simplified procedure.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bottom structure which is suitable for use in such an improved water tank and which can be built or fabricated with a simplified procedure.

Other objects, features and attendant advantages o the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The drawings represent embodiments of the pre fabricated water tank according to the present invention` in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of an example of the water tank embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view oi the water tank shown in FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic plan view, showing the outline of the layout of the bottom structure;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic perspective lview, with parte broken away, of the essential portions of the bottorr structure shown in FIG. l;

FIG. 5 is a schematical vertical sectional view of z part of the bottom structure taken along the line V-V in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a schematical vertical sectional view of a part of the bottom structure taken along the line VI-Vl in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a schematical longitudinal section view o1 la modification of the water tank which is also incorporated in the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematical longitudinal sectional view o1 a still another modification of the water tank embodying the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic perspective view, partly in exploded fashion, showing the manner in which the re spective side wall unit members are combined together, and also showing the manner in which the bottom members are combined with the sidewall unit members in the example of water tank shown in FIG. l;

FIG. is diagrammatic sectional elevation, in an enarged scale as viewed from a certain angle of FIG. 9, ahowing the manner` in which the side wall unit members tre connected together by the connecting members in he example of water tank structure shown in FIG. 1; md

FIG. 11 is a..diagrammatic sectional view, in an enarged scale as viewed from a different angle in FIG. 9, :howing the manner in which the side wall unit members tre connected together by the connecting members.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The Prefabricated water tank of the present invention s featured by comprising a unique bottom or base struc- ;ure which is formed or installed on a sufficiently firm ground or foundation so as to have a desired floor area )y assemblying the following members: cap members :ach being. manufactured with a plate having a sufficient nechanical strength and having four adjacent marginal :nd portions which are bent at right angle along the narginal lines so as to extend outwardly and to form m open box shape having four side walls having a uniorm length of wall extending in the outward direction from the edges of the plate so as to be usedl as caps; chanlel members which are made also ywith a material having timilarly suicient physical strength, each having a longi- :udinally extending side walls which dene a channel herebetween, said channel members being used to contect the-oppositely facing Vertical side walls of adjacenty disposed cap members; connecting members which 1re adapted for connecting the end portions of the adacently disposed channel members and which are formed )n a plate having a square shape in general; and wateraroof caulking which is provided in the spaces formed )etween the adjacent cap members.

The water tank of the present invention which is con- :tructed on a rm ground or foundation is insured of a nechanical strength which is sufcient for coping with he pressure of water which is accommodated in the :ompleted water tank. Besides, the manner in which the :hannel members are arranged, the manner in which he channel members join the cap mambers, and further he provision of the water-proof caulking in the spaces lefined by the adjacent cap members, facilitate greatly he construction work, with the result that the period )f time required for the completion of the construction s reduced markedlyl and also that the overall weight of he completed structure is greatly curtailed as compared vith the similar structures of the prior art.

The construction of the portions corresponding to the tide walls of a water tank may be performed by employng side wall unit members which are manufactured for he exclusive use of the water tanks fabricated accordng to the -present invention. In case a water tank is con- ;tructed by the use of these exclusively made side wall mit members, the latter are manufactured so as to have he formation of projections on the end edge faces of :ach unit wall member in a shape such as is shown, by vay of example, at 13 in FIGS. 10 and 11. The connecion between these unit wall members and the connecion between the wall unit members and the bottom or loor plates are effected by fitting these projections into :hannel members in such a manner as shown in FIGS. .0 and 11. In the space between the adjacent channel nembers mounted on the oppositely disposed wall unit nembers and in the space between the channel-mounted :nd edges of a wall unit member and a oor member, here is provided a water-proof caulking to produce a lealed water-tight continued surface.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings, descripion of an embodiment of the present invention will be nade hereunder in further detail.

A water tank may be installed directly on the plane 1 )f the ground in the manner as shown in FIGS. `2, 7 and 8 in case said ground provides a sufliciently firm and reliablerbase. In the event, however, that this ground is not sufliciently firm for the installation of the water tank, a foundation 2 having a suicient firmness and reliability is artilically constructed on top of the plane 1 of the ground. As shown in FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6, the installation of a Water tank begins with the placing of connecting members 4 which are of a structure as will be described later, on the surface of the ground 1 or the foundation 2. In the present instance', description will be made on a water tank which is installed on a man-made foundation 2, for the convenience of explanation.

Each of said connecting members 4 comprises a square steel plate and four L-shaped angle steels 3v of a uniform size but small in the longitudinal length which are fixed to the upper face of said steel plate in such a fashion that these four. pieces of angle steel bars 3 are disposed, one at each corner ofan imaginary square of a predetermined uniform size drawn on the face of the steel plate, with the external angle or the apex of each angle steel pointing to the center of said imaginary square and with the planes of the facing walls of two angle steels being disposed in parallel to each other and also being in alignment with the planes of the facing walls of the adjacently disposed angle steels as is clearly shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The connecting members 4 having the foregoing structure are adapted to receive the channel members 6 in such a way that a channel member is received between a pair of angle steels formed on one face of the steel plate of the connecting member 4 and a pair of angle steels formed on the steel plate of an adjacent connecting member 4 in a maner as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Connecting members 4 which have the aforesaid L-shaped angle steel =bars on one side of the steel plates are laid in predetermined spaced crosswise relationship on the face of said foundation 2 in a manner as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.

In order to insure that these steel plates of the connecting members 4 are laid at an even level with each other on the foundation 2 in such a manner that-the upper face of one of the connecting members 4 each bearing four angle steels 3 thereon is in alignment with the planes of the upper faces of the adjacent angle steels, there is used an appropriate levelling material 5 such as mortar, asphalt or the like which is placed under the lower faces of the connecting members. The connecting members 4 which are disposed on a foundation 2 in the aforesaid fashion can support, with the assistance and cooperation of the angle steels 3 formed thereon, the channel members 6 with stability.

After the connecting members 4 have been laid on the foundation 2` at an even level relative to each other, a channel member 6 is placed so as to straddle over two of the adjacent connecting members 4, with the open channel facing upwardly, said two connecting members 4 being disposed at a predetermined space from each other, so that the channel member 6 spans, in bridge form, Ibetween these two connecting members 4, with the vertical side walls of said channel member 6 lbeing engaged between two pairs of angle steels formed on these two adjacent connectng members 4, at the end portions of these side walls of the channel member 6. As a consequence, the channel members 6 which are received between a series of angle steels of a plurality of connecting members 4 disposed crosswise on the4 foundation 2, form a neatly arranged crosswise grid form, with the respective end portions of the side walls of the channel members being engagingly received between pairs of the angle steel bars 3 of the adjacent connecting members. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the spaces 7 which are in the form of meshes and which are defined by the side walls of the respective channel members 6, and the spaces 8 which are produced locally beneath the bottom walls of the channel members 6- where the lbottom walls thereof are not in contact with the steel plates of the connecting members or in other Words where the channel members span between the adjacent steel plates, are filled with mortar, soil concrete, asphalt or any other appropriate filling material. This filler serves to arrest any reduction in the mechanical strength of the resulting bottom structure of the Water tank due to the formed spaces 7 and 8, and also to produce a water-proof continuous surface of the structure.

A cap member 9 which is formed by bending the four marginal edge portions of a square steel plate downwardly at right angles relative to the plane of the steel plate to form vertical side walls of a uniform length and to thereby form a box having open top is placed, with the bottom wall facing upwardly, onto the grid-like channel members 6 which are laid on the connecting members 4 in such a way that the four inner peripheral faces of the side walls 10 of each cap member 9 are in tightfit engagement with the inner side walls of the channel members 6 which jointly form a mesh which is defined thereby. After the cap member 9 is mounted onto the channel members 6, the mesh which is defined by the side walls of the four channel members which are disposed to form a square is closed or.covered. Thereafter, the grooves shown at a of the channel members 6 are filled with a water-insulating filling material (which is referred to as 11 in FIG. ll) such, for example, as asphalt, to thereby form a water-tight bottom structure.

In the accompanying drawings, there are shown cap members 9 which are of a box-like configuration and which are square in their plan view. It should be understood that the shape or configuration of the cap members 9 is not limited thereto which is given only by way of example, and that any desired shape may be adapted as required.

The wall structure which is to be erected so as to surround the peripheral end edges of the formed bottom structure of the water tank may be built according to the method of the prior art.

As a modified embodiment, a gently sloped embankment 12 as shown in FIG. 7 may be constructed first, and after a sufficiently firm and reliable foundation is formed on the ground surrounded by the embankment 12, a bottom structure may be formed thereon, and the walls surrounding the bottom structure may be formed in exactly the same fashion as that in which the bottom structure has been fabricated asv described above. It is also possible to construct the bottom structure so that it has a concave surface as is shown in FIG. 8.

Description will be next directed to an instance where the side walls of a water tank are formed by the use of the Prefabricated individual side wall unit members. FIGS. l, 2, 9 and l1 show one example of such instance. In these drawings, the side wall unit members 13 are formed so as to have an inverted T-shape by the frame members. Other than the inverted T-shape fabrication, L-shape structure of walls is used frequently also. In any of these fabrications, the walls are formed with the portions which constitute the wall faces and also with the base members which are adapted to fixedly hold the wall portions. The portions of the walls which correspond to the inner faces of the water tank consist of steel plates or iron boards which constitute the main components of the'wall unit members.

The connection between the side wall unit members is performed in such a way that L-shaped angle steels 1S areapplied onto the rear sides of the adjacently disposed wall unit members as at 14 and 14', respectively, and in the space between the opposing L-shaped steel bars 15 is inserted a water-proof filling material 16 such as asphalt and the resulting sandwich structure consisting of the oppositely disposed L-shaped steel bars 15 and the filler interposed therebetween is nipped between the side walls defining the groove of a U-shaped joiner 17. This U- shaped `member 17 is further fastened and fixed by means of a fastening member such as bolt and nut. Thus, a water-tight connection of the wall unit members is obtained.

Also, the connection between a side wall unit member 13 and the bottom member is performed in such a way as shown in FIGS. 9-11 where a channel member 6' having the structure as has been described is attached, with the open groove facing upwardly, to the end edge face of the lower portion of the side wall unit member 13. This channel member 6 is utilized as a part of the groove a of the aforesaid grid form. In a manner as has been described, a cap member 9 is mounted thereon by the -use of the side wall 10 of said cap member, and then a Water-proof filling material 11 is filled in the open space defined by the walls of the channel members which are disposed in neat grid form. As -a result, a watertight joint is obtained.

It is needless to say that the side wall unit members 13 and the aforesaid members adapted to connect these wall unit members require no uniting or joining operations which are performed at the site of construction.

After the bottom structure and the side walls of a water tank have been constructed in the manner as have been described, the remaining operation which needs to be made is laying earth around the external walls of the fabricated water tank to form an embankment 20 and also installing continuous barrier consisting of precast concrete blocks 21 so as vto surround the external end portions of the water tank to block the water from getting access to the walls of the tank.

As has been described, the water tank of the present invention is fabricated in water-tight fashion by assembling together cap members, channel members Iand connecting members adapted for fixedly uniting said channel members, and by applying a water-proof caulking in the spaces formed between the joints and channels. In a. construction of a Water tank by the adaption of the technique of the present invention, the construction work consists of a very simple assembling operation with the exception of the foundation or ground work. As such, the operations which are performed at the site of construction are extremely simplified and, as the natural result, the construction work is carried out with a remarkable efficiency and great speed. Also, the individual component members can be produced in large numbers and besides, they can be transported or carried along with great easiness. As a result, these component members can be available at cheap cost. Furthermore, local repair and modification of the construction are made feasible from the use of these component members. In addition, the completed water tank is of `a much reduced weight as compared with the similar construction.

In case the water tank is installed on a ground or foundation which is of a considerable firmness and reliability, the completed water tank will, even when it is of a large scale, perfectly cope with the earth pressure as well as the water pressure which will be applied to the water tank. Another advantages of the present invention lies in that a water tank of a small scale which is of the type for use in the household can .be easily fabricated by a non-engineer layman.

What is claimed is:

1. A prefabricated water tank construction comprising a bottom framework consisting of a plurality of capping members, each having a top surface and downwardly extending flanges around the peripheral edges thereof and perpendicular thereto, a plurality of plate members each having a plurality of right angle members mounted on the top surface thereof, the planes of the facing walls of any two of said members being parallel to each other and also in alignment with the'planes of the facing walls of the adj acently disposed angle members, a plurality of channel members with perpendicular side walls extending between the plates with the channel end portions nesting between the facing wall of two of said right angle members, the perpendicular side walls Aof adjacent channel members abutting, said capping members tting over one side wall of at least two of said channel members and at least one of said right angle members, the ange Width of said capping members being equal to the height of said channel member side walls and the height of said angle members thereby insuring a rigid and watertight engagement, the spaces formed by the outside facing surfaces of said anges and the bottom of said channel members being lled with ya moldable waterproof composition, and side walls surrounding said bottom framework, whereby the construction may absorb external ground swelling due to the vertically adjacent surfaces of the individual components and lack of permanent fastening means.

2. The construction as claimed in claim 1 wherein the end portions of each channel member side walls are in abutting relationship to further insure a watertight structure.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 11/ 1880 Hendrick 52?-169 9/ 1926 Wales 52-26-5 8/ 1932 Mortensen 52-387 3/1959 Davis 52-470 X l/l962 Lerner 52,-169 X 6/ 1963 Miccio et al. 52-169 X 3/1966 Stier 52-169 FOREIGN PATENTS 3/ 1961 Canada. 5/ 1962 Italy.

U.S. C1. X.R. 

